Who Has a Wheel Loader on Their Farm?

We had an old jd 444 many years ago and it was ok. The loader could take all sorts of abuse that would destroy a regular tractor and fel. The biggest problem with it was the 2 speed auto transmission, slow and didn't push worth a crap. The tranny gave out at about 16k hours when a bearing went out on main hydraulic pump drive and fell between some gears and busted it all to hell. Wasn't worth fixing as a rebuild was over 20 grand at that time. Now have an old Ford backhoe and it is much more versatile and gets used for all sorts of things but not nearly as good for just loader work.

Deere 544B. Yes its older but for what I paid its been ok. Dropped a liner or something in it last year and never got around to fixing it yet, SOB once you have one you really miss it when its down.

Reason I bought Deere...12 volt electric, most others are 24 or split. Straight hydraulic brakes same as a Deere tractor...Cat and many other older ones use a air over hydraulic automotive system, can be a real PITA. And availability of parts aftermarket, som of the more oddball or less common ones you have to go OEM. Deere also runs Allison transmission, again very common. And last but not least, resale and residual value and availability of additional attachments.

Biggest issue with a wheel loader in most ag situations, they are a dog in mud, tires are useless and because of weight, they sink like a giant rock. I run chains on the front axle of mine almost constantly and also have a set for rear axle in winter. With chains it take a lot to stop one. Deere also uses a mechanical locker in the front diff, and while this helps in many situations, it is one of the main reasons you need chains on the rear axle on ice, you can't steer.

Visibility, versatility and agility are things you notice right away over a tractor, you can get into places and do things a tractor simply can't. And the durability and ability to lift and load. I handle a lot of sand and gravel with mine as well as manure and more. And becasue of how and where you sit, you can see so much better even with an 8 foot bucket. And they are fast, as I have said, nothing beats a loader for snow pushing and moving, nothing.

I'll mention this, if you go with too big a machine, you lose a lot of the versatility I speak of, and the weight skyrockets.

As with anything you get what you pay for, cheaper ones are older and often require some TLC. Avoid one that has obviously had the shit beat out of it. Hydraulic pumps and transmission is where the money is, even a OEM main pump for mine is south of 4K, reman tranny @ 11, but with older, you have much more reasonable options.

Anyone have experience with Deere wheel loaders? Specifically a 2011 model 524K with about 5500 hours? Also have thought about Cat but those usually have more hours for same price. Like a 2013 924K with 13,XXX hours for almost as much as that Deere. I talked to one guy with a high hour(around 20K hours) Cat and he said the thing just always runs, has been an excellent unit. My farm equipment mindset tells me something with 10K+ hours is gonna be needing some repairs...

Cat is certainly the top dog (lol) in construction equipment. You pay extra for the name for sure, but also the service and parts availability is second to none. I could almost guarantee that there isn’t a part you couldn’t get for a machine no matter what year it is. 10,000 hours on construction equipment is peanuts, just go look at any site with loaders for sale, nothing to see 30-40,000 hours on some, mind you they are designed to be rebuilt over and over and that doesn’t come cheap. Deere is no slouch though either, very good quality and nice to operate, can’t comment on parts, but believe that they are pretty good in that department as well. Used to run mostly Cat equipment, some old and a couple newer pieces, all were very reliable. Demoed a Deere one time when the guys I was working for were upgrading a loader, and working in the pit, the Deere outperformed the Cat of comparable size. They ended up getting a 938G Cat mostly because of the service from Cat. Have a friend that runs all Deere equipment and he has no issues. Comes down to preference. For farm use either will do anything you would ever need it to do.

Sure glad we picked up a loader, gets used every few days for something. Was nice to lift the pallet of canola seed up with it instead of carrying it up the steps!

I have a small telehandler already, absolutely love it. I have been looking at larger Ag telehandlers but availability is poor and they are plenty expensive too. The way I feel is that a wheel loader would do some things best which are different than other pieces on the farm. Tele would be handier to get into and reach is nice, but visibility and strength of the wheel loader would be awesome. I also am generally looking for low hour pieces that are pre-emissions and this unit fits the bill there as well. 

Looked at machine today, very tidy unit. Was disappointed to see no ignition key but one needed for the door. Talk about a stupid setup that is, need to keep track of the key for when you need to lock it so may as well be in the ignition instead of getting lost...

I've never bought a piece of industrial equipment that I regretted, although some are used sparingly now like my large excavator. 

And the problem with buying a clapped out excavator is you'll spend far more in parts and repairs than you bought the machine for.  Our Case hoe works and runs well, but has lots of hydraulic leaks and many many electrical problems over the years. Just the other day my cousin reported that it would not stay throttled up sometimes.  Access to a good heavy-duty mechanic is important!